More than 40 button cell batteries and other battery designs are stored in glass cabinets in Moniek Tromp’s laboratory at the University of Groningen. They are charged and discharged again and again. Sometimes faster, sometimes slower. “We design and build these batteries ourselves and test them under different conditions,” says Tromp, professor of materials chemistry and scientific director of the Zernike Institute for Advanced Materials (ZIAM).
Tromp is working with her research group on the batteries of the future. “Batteries are becoming increasingly important and they must last longer, be safe and consist of sustainable materials,” she says. Applications range from mobile phones, medical devices – in and on your body – and drones for defense to temporary energy storage for the power grid and the electrification of cars, shipping and aviation – all these applications require different battery properties.
Tromp has (also) put batteries on the agenda in the Netherlands. “We are now dependent on other countries, while we have a lot of industry that will have to electrify, such as trucks and agricultural equipment.” She is involved in a National Growth Fund project for the development of the Dutch battery ecosystem, which was awarded 800 million euros two years ago. This can be spent from this year onwards. “Our goal is to strengthen Dutch battery developments in the areas of sustainability, circularity and independence – and to become an important global player. The Netherlands has the knowledge and skills to do this.”
What’s wrong with today’s batteries?
“Batteries now consist of two electrodes with a liquid electrolyte between them. During charging and discharging, charge carriers move through the electrolyte from one electrode to the other. If this transport no longer runs properly, material accumulates somewhere or the electrode material is not stable and dissolves slowly, then the battery degrades. Another problem is that the liquid electrolyte can react and, for example, be converted into a gas. This can happen if you do not charge the battery properly. used, or if it becomes damaged, for example if your electric bicycle falls. The battery can even explode.
“The origin of the materials and sustainability of the processes is also a problem. The lithium-ion batteries that we now use for almost everything contain lithium, cobalt, nickel and manganese. These materials are scarce in Europe, we are dependent on other parts of the world, where materials are also not always mined and processed ethically or environmentally consciously.
“And current geopolitics limits our accessibility to many materials. At the beginning of November, for example, China announced export restrictions on lithium-ion batteries and the materials and equipment used to make them.”
What kind of solutions are you looking at?
“Within the growth fund project, we are looking at ways to recover materials from batteries to reuse them. The production process, which currently uses toxic substances and a lot of energy, can also be made more sustainable. We are also investigating ways to make lithium-ion batteries better and more sustainable and we are looking at completely different types of batteries, based on other materials.
“Within my research group we also conduct more fundamental research into electrochemistry and different types of batteries. For this we make batteries ourselves, which we study by, for example, looking into them with X-rays to see what exactly happens at the electrode, the electrolyte and at the interfaces between them. With this knowledge we can design more stable batteries.
“To make a sustainable battery ecosystem successful, we are also working on national and European legislation and regulations, the business climate and a market for our new batteries. This is necessary to compete with mega-factories for lithium-ion batteries, especially in Asia.”
What alternatives are there?
“For example, we are trying to remove cobalt or replace lithium with sodium, which can be extracted more easily and sustainably. This does require adjustments to the battery design. We are also looking at solid electrolytes, which can be safer than liquids. We are also investigating completely different chemical compositions.
“For example, we focus on batteries based on iron. Iron is not a simple material to work with within a battery, but in terms of sustainability it is very interesting. I often jokingly say that we have enough rust, let’s put it to good use. For example, we are looking at iron-nickel and iron-air batteries. They are technically complicated and much heavier than lithium-ion batteries. But they are suitable for stationary applications where you do not have to move the battery, such as in houses or neighborhoods.
“I personally think that we need to follow all these different paths, because we need a lot of batteries for different applications, for the energy transition to succeed.”
Will we have Dutch batteries in twenty years?
“Probably not in our phones and cars, but perhaps in drones, medical and health electronics and stationary storage. Everyone is skeptical whether we will succeed, because China is putting much more money and manpower into those developments and making good batteries on a large scale is difficult, because the entire production process is precise. But if we don’t believe in it, it won’t work. So I really believe in it. I think the first factory will be one for lithium-ion batteries. But I hope that after that we also quickly switch to other materials.”
Would you like to start your own battery factory in the Netherlands?
“My father had his own company, my brother has one, and I thought during my studies that I would also go into business. In some ways that still appeals. Especially when I look at what needs to be done in the Dutch battery sector. More people need to take action. But I now think it is my role to connect science, industry and politics. That is essential to make sufficient progress and therefore make a difference. That is why I am in The Hague a lot.” Laughing: “And I don’t know how to build a factory. But I am involved in a proposal for a Dutch battery factory. So maybe it will happen one day.”
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